"We are not blind, surely?" [Jn 9: 40]

4TH SUNDAY OF LENT

[ John 9: 1-41 ]

   “It’s karma!”

When bad things happen, we often hear people saying, “It’s karma.”

Karma is an oriental belief that human beings are governed by a cosmic spiritual law based on moral meritocracy: we are either punished or rewarded according to our moral activities and behaviours.

According to this belief, when we do good, we will be rewarded either in this life, or in a life to come. Likewise, if we do evil, we will suffer the punishment, again, either in this life here and now, or in the hereafter.

It is also believe that the karma, good or bad, can be transgenerational, and thus affecting multiple generations. A person’s karma can affect the child(ren), the grandchild(ren) and even the great grandchild(ren)...

   Catholics DO NOT believe in karma.

Catholics DO NOT and MUST NOT believe in karma because Christianity is a religion of GRACE. Grace, simply put, is ‘the free and undeserved gifts from God’.

Christianity teaches that [Rm 5: 8], “God proves His love for us that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.”

We are all sinners – sinful, broken, hopeless, despicable and wretched – deserving of severe punishment, but God, out of His sheer goodness and generosity, offers us the GRACE OF SALVATION! We are not worthy, yet our Lord Jesus Christ – the eternal Son of the Father – died for us that we may live!

Even the popular Christian hymn exclaimed, “Amazing grace how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me!”

   “Who sinned, this man or his parents?” [Jn 9: 2]

On the Fourth Sunday of Lent (Laetare Sunday), John the Evangelist recalls the healing of the man born blind.

It was, and still is, commonly perceived that birth defects or deformities, virulent diseases, human pains and sufferings, and even tragedies, disasters and calamities, etc. are punishment from God. Thus, it is widely believed that those who suffer must have sinned and incurred God’s wrath, and therefore they deserve to suffer.

   “Who sinned, this man or his parents?” [Jn 9: 2] the disciples asked Jesus.

   Jesus rubbished the karmic belief and replied, “Neither he nor his parents sinned… He was born blind so that the works of God might be displayed in him…” [Jn 9: 3]

No, Jesus does not mean God has ‘purposely’ made the man blind from birth. What Jesus is trying to say is: Trust in Me because I can draw straight with crooked lines.

Indeed, God can still work wonders, no matter how blind or how long the man has been blind. There is nothing that can prevent God from doing marvels and working wonders in our lives – not even birth defects or deformities, virulent diseases, human pains and sufferings, tragedies, disasters and calamities, or even sin and death…

   Catholics DO NOT believe in sola gratia.

Catholics DO NOT believe in sola gratia (grace alone). We believe in God’s grace and we also believe in our cooperation with God’s grace. God can give us all the free and undeserved gifts but we have the freedom to choose to accept or reject His grace.

   Jesus spat on the ground, made a paste with the spittle, and put over the eyes of the blind man and told him, “Go and wash in the Pool of Siloam” [Jn 9: 7]. 

God respects our freedom of choice. He does not force His grace upon us. If we choose to reject His grace, we will fall away from Him. Had the blind man not cooperated with God’s grace, Jesus would be just a kind stranger who tried to help but failed.

Jesus said GO, and the man really went, did as he was instructed, and he regained his sight. Like the blind man, if we choose to cooperate with Jesus, we will grow closer to Him: He will open our eyes, ears, minds and hearts!

   “We are not blind, surely?” [Jn 9: 40]

We can boast that we see, we know, and we understand. Yet, we can still be spiritually blind. Very often, we are blind to our own sinfulness, brokenness and wretchedness. We see, we count and we condemn the sins in others, but we do not see our own sins.

Not only that, we also close our eyes and are blind to our suffering Lord in the cry of the poor, in the plight of the voiceless, in the loneliness of the forsaken, and in the agony of those around us.

Today, our Lord Jesus warns us of our spiritual blindness [Jn 9: 41], “If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.”

   Water, Light and Life.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI beautifully explains that, “On these Sundays in Lent, the liturgy takes us on a true and proper baptismal route through the texts of John’s Gospel: last Sunday, Jesus promised the gift of ‘Living Water’ to the Samaritan woman; today, He reveals Himself as ‘the Light of the World’; next Sunday, in raising His friend Lazarus, He will present Himself as ‘the Resurrection and the Life’. Water, light and life are symbols of Baptism, the Sacrament that ‘immerses’ believers in the mystery of death and Resurrection of Christ, liberating them from the slavery of sin and giving them eternal life.”

We are all blind, spiritually, in one way or another. During our baptism, we have been immersed in the ‘Living Water’, illuminated with the ‘Light’, and infused with the ‘new Life’ – we have received grace upon grace! May we always cooperate with God’s grace!

Our conversion is a lifelong journey. Jesus is the ONLY Light of the World who can liberate us from the slavery of sin, guide us safely through the valley dark as death, and give us eternal life.

Let our fervent prayer be:

   “Lord Jesus Christ,

   open my eyes that I may see You,

   open my ears that I may listen to You,

   open my mind that I may understand You,

   and open my heart that I may believe in You.”

Let us also pray that God’s justice, peace, truth and love may prevail in Ukraine, Sri Lanka and Nicaragua.